Remarks of Ambassador Kristie A. Kenney at the

Swearing-In Ceremony for U.S. Peace Corps Volunteers “Batch 266”

U.S. Embassy, Manila, August 3, 2007

 

 

Magandang hapon sa inyong lahat.  Maayong hapon to those of you joining us from the Visayas, and a very pleasant good afternoon to all of you.  I would like to welcome everyone to the United States Embassy for a very special occasion. 

 

I would like to give a special welcome to the Secretary of Education, the Honorable Jesli Lapus; to Secretary Cornejo; Secretary Carandang; General Razon; and so many of the friends who are here with us today in this beautiful and historic building that we’re in. 

 

For those of you who don’t know, this building was originally built to house the High Commission of the United States of America.  It was occupied by the Japanese during the war, badly damaged in re-taking, and has since of course been rebuilt.  It was also the place for the war crime trials for the Japanese who were held after the war, and the flag out front was raised once again by General MacArthur himself.  So we are in a very historic building that has seen many, many special events and today certainly fits in as one of the most special.

 

As many of you know, our Peace Corps program here is one of the oldest in the world.  More than 8,000 volunteers have served here and so our Peace Corps program is a real part of the history of partnership Americans and Filipinos share together.  Today we are moving forward to begin another chapter in that relationship.

 

I would like to start by thanking all of you who are partners with our Peace Corps program from government, from NGOs, and from civil society.  It is a true partnership we share here and it is for us a great honor to work with so many people who are dedicated and talented, and think of creative ways to make the future we all share a brighter and better one. 

 

I would like to give a very warm welcome to those of you who are family to our Peace Corps volunteers.  The Philippine families who house our volunteers are families to all of us.  You take in people from another land whom you’ve never met until they showed up on your doorstep, and you make them family.  It is a very special Filipino trait, certainly one all of us here at the Embassy feel.  You make us feel like part of the family from the day we arrive.

 

So I thank all of you who have welcomed our Volunteers into your homes and made them feel like they have family here in the Philippines.  And a very, very special welcome to those of you who are about to take the oath of office as a Peace Corps Volunteer.  I want to congratulate all of you.

 

You are coming here filled with talent.  You have very diverse backgrounds, but you are all bringing extraordinary strengths.  You also bring dedication, and you bring a spirit of giving.  You have been willing to leave behind your homes and your families and your jobs, to come to a new and strange country, because you like to make a difference.  And you will.  I think the lesson we all have learned is that one person does matter.  No one of us is more important than another.  Every single one of us has a chance every single day to do something wonderful.  And you will have that chance so many times as you work throughout the Philippines.  And you will do it properly because you will be doing it with so many Filipinos who advise and guide, and assist and push, and offer you enthusiasm and support. 

 

You have a lot to bring, but you are also going to get a lot in exchange.  You are going to learn from Filipinos how to care, how to share, how to value family, and how to have the ability to turn a stranger into a friend.  You will learn from Filipino innovation and creativity, the special gift that makes a very ordinary day a special event.  It is a great partnership.  And I think all of us go into this because we have the sense of something bigger than ourselves; that we are not only making a difference, but we are part of a larger group that wants to see the very best that we can see for our children, for our grandparents, and for those of us who protect the natural resources of our planet. 

 

So it is indeed an extraordinary honor to have everyone here today as we move forward with the next chapter in welcoming a group of talented new Peace Corps Volunteers and thanking and honoring those of you who partner with us. 

 

I want to thank the DFA Choir for setting exactly the right tone for today in showcasing wonderful music from both of our countries, showcasing spectacular Filipino talent with that great spirit of reaching out, compassion, and sharing that characterizes both of our peoples, and the Peace Corps.

 

Congratulations to all of you.  I look forward to issuing your oath of office very soon.  Thank you to everyone else for joining us today and for making this such a special partnership.  Thank you, maraming salamat to all of you.                                                     

 

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